- 50g/1¾ oz caster sugar
- 50g/1¾ oz butter, cut into cubes
- 150ml/¼ pt milk
- 1 x 7g sachet of fast-action dried yeast
- 375g/13oz strong white flour, plus extra for dusting
- ½ tsp fine sea salt
- 1 tsp ground cinnamon
- 1 lemon, zest finely grated
- 1 large egg, beaten
- 125g/5oz raisins or 100g/4oz raisins and 25g/1oz currants
- sunflower oil, for greasing
- butter and syrup or honey, to serve
- Put the sugar, butter and milk in a small saucepan and heat very gently for a few seconds until just warm. Take care that the milk doesn’t get too hot or the yeast won’t work.
- Pour the milk mixture into a heatproof bowl and stir in the yeast. Leave for 10 minutes or until a light foam forms on the surface.
- Mix the flour, salt, cinnamon and lemon zest in a large bowl and make a well in the centre.
- Whisk the egg into the warm milk mixture, then pour it all on to the flour. Stir with a wooden spoon until the mixture forms a ball.
- Turn the mixture out on to a very lightly floured surface and knead for 5 minutes to make a smooth, pliable dough.
- Knead the fruit into the dough for a couple of minutes until it is evenly distributed.
- Place the dough in a lightly oiled bowl and cover with oiled clingfilm. Leave to rise in a warm place for 1½ hours, or until it has doubled in size and is spongy to touch.
- Return the dough to the work surface and knock it back with your knuckles. Knead lightly, then divide the dough into 8 portions. Roll each of these into a ball, then pull the dough from around the sides and tuck it underneath the bun to give it a neat shape.
- Place the buns on a large baking tray lined with baking parchment and flatten them slightly. If your tray isn’t large enough to take all of the buns at once, bake them in a couple of batches.
- Cover with oiled clingfilm and leave to prove for a further 45 minutes.
- Preheat the oven to 190°C/375F/Gas 5. Remove the clingfilm and bake the buns in the centre of the oven for about 20 minutes until risen and golden brown.
- Serve warm the day they’re made – great spread with butter and drizzled with syrup or honey.